2009 Chrysler Pt Cruiser Lx Wagon 4-door 2.4l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

eBay Find of the Day: 1979 Chrysler ETV-1 electric car prototype

Electric cars may be reaching their time in the sun with successes like the Tesla Model S, but the basic concept goes back to practically beginning of motoring. EVs also saw a brief renaissance in the 1970s when automakers were trying find a way around rising fuel prices. This 1979 Chrysler ETV-1 concept for sale on eBay Motors is a great example from that era.
Built in 1979, designers hoped the ETV-1 would preview what an electric car would look like in 1985. The base price was slated to start at $6,400, or the rough equivalent of $20,536, which seems like an optimistic price. General Electric created the ETV-1's powertrain, and Chrysler was in charge of styling. At the time, the Department of Energy called it "the first advanced four-passenger subcompact experimental electric car."
While it seems ancient compared to today's EVs, the ETV-1 featured regenerative braking and a computer-controlled electric motor. Chrysler reported a 100-mile range at 45 miles per hour with two passengers in the car. The range fell to 75 miles with four passengers. Acceleration was not brisk with Chrysler claiming the run to 30 mph in 9 seconds. Power was stored in 18 lead-acid batteries, and a full charge took 10 hours from a home outlet.

1963 Chrysler Turbine Car is for sale, and it's the coolest car you can buy

If you have a lot of money, there are a lot of really wild and exciting cars to choose from. But I feel confident in saying that none of them, none of them, can come close to being as brilliantly badass as this 1963 Chrysler Turbine Car, first spotted by Barn Finds, which, yes, is actually something you can buy and own. And even drive! Here's a quick recap of the Turbine Car in case you're unfamiliar. Back in the 1960s, Chrysler was researching turbine engines for vehicle propulsion, and to get an idea for how well they would work in the real world, they built 5 prototype cars followed by 50 production models. Those latter models did a tour to just over 200 families, each of which spent 90 days driving the cars. According to Motor Trend, the engine produced 130 horsepower and 425 pound-feet of torque, and it was paired with a three-speed automatic. Afterward, the cars were returned to Chrysler, which eventually decided that turbine engines weren't the way of the future. According to Hyman Ltd., the company selling this example, only nine Turbine Cars were spared the crusher, and six were sent to museums. This was one of the cars Chrysler held onto, and it was occasionally loaned to executives and such. It was then sold to William Harrah for his collection and museum near Reno. It later was sold to the founder of Domino's Pizza, and then to the latest owner, Frank Kleptz. Kleptz then worked with GE Engine Services to rebuild the engine and make the car run again. As it sits, the car features its original paint, trim and interior. It comes with spare parts and various documents. And of course it oozes cool, from the whistling engine under the hood to the jet-inspired, Ghia-built body and sleek interior. Plus, you can be sure you won't see another one on the road, unless you happen to be cruising by Jay Leno's garage in Burbank, Calif. It really doesn't get cooler than this. Hyman hasn't listed a price for it, but we're sure it will sell for a massive amount, and it would probably be money well spent. Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Bill Harrah's car collection was in Las Vegas, it was actually near Reno. The text has been updated to reflect this. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.    

2015 Chrysler 300 First Drive [w/video]

When Chrysler last updated its 300 in 2011, the fullsize sedan market was a very different place than it is today. Ford's redesigned Taurus was in showrooms, sure, but segment stalwarts like the Toyota Avalon and Chevrolet Impala were languishing at the tail end of their model cycles. And still, the second-generation 300 (not counting the "letter series" cars from the 1950s and '60s, of course) failed to recapitulate the booming success of the model reboot in 2004. Something in the combination of the down economy, higher gas prices and great product from front-wheel-drive entries in the class kept the 300 from the six-digit sales numbers it saw in the early 2000s. For the 2015 model year, Chrysler hopes that a more clearly defined purpose for its big sedan, combined with liberal dipping into the corporate tech toy box, will rekindle buyer interest. Considering the mild characters and front-driver dynamics of its mainstream competition, the promise of V8 power and rear-wheel drive should at least turn the heads of those looking for a car with a little edge. I grabbed the keys of the edgiest of the bunch, the sport-intended 300S, and found a big sedan that gives away some practicality to the rest of its segment mates. The trade-off for the dip in pragmatism is an uptick and driving fun and attitude that should make all the difference for the right buyer. Even though the hard-to-miss face of the 300 has come in for another nip and tuck, that attitude is still clearly on display, too. The grille of the 300 is some 33-percent larger than the outgoing model, though it's still far less brutal than the throwback styling of the 2005 "Baby Bentley" car, at least to my eyes. The cheese grater insert is metallic in most trims of the 300, though the 300S you see in my photo set gets the meaner blacked-out treatment. A quick scroll through our gallery will show you that the rest of the 300 has been similarly changed but not reinvented. Light clusters front and rear are revised, the rear clip has been re-forged with less busy styling, and the whole car has been de-chromed to a large extent (this 300S is wearing the least blingy outfit of the bunch). That rear spoiler is S-model specific. I held the existing 300 interior in fairly high regard, and this new car improves on that base.